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Lily Finch

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jul, 2022

Stories (93)
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93 Stories

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Dad’s Fine With Me

Submitted to Contest #261

What the hell is he doing? Gassing a frog? That's not right. My brain calculated as terrifying and sick things clashed, messing up my stomach and mind. Goosebumps sprouted like braille on paper.Jimmy, my cousin, caused us more trouble every time he visited. I was horrified as I saw Jimmy's eyes dance with excitement at the flaming frog leaping around.What a hack! I turned away, helpless—the young girl in me couldn't save it. Even though I was woozy-legged and my stomach was turning at the horrible sight, it gave me strength.#Jimmy's actions ...

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Being in the Know Makes A Better Version of History

Submitted to Contest #258

It was January, and Austria's picturesque beauty was white and wild in its 0–5 °C climatic conditions. I dropped in on Karla Pölzl, Alois Hitler's third wife. She was five or six months pregnant.He appeared and announced himself as "the trekker" from another time. He arrived in time to catch Klara hanging her clothes on the line. She hummed a tune to an opera she loved and knew well; her voice was like a songbird's. "I've come a long way today, and I'm wondering if I might trouble you with a glass of water, please," he said. She jumped....

15 likes 10 comments 10
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Macy’s Unravelling

Submitted to Contest #255

Macy inherited her aunt’s farm. She and Daniel talked about making a go of it on the farm and leaving their city lives behind. Neither was sure what to do with a farm, but they wanted to learn and were excited to have the opportunity. The best part for Macy was that her sister, Nerva, lived just down the lane at the next house.  Macy had been a famous midwife in the city and was willing to continue practicing in this rural community. Macy was the midwife who delivered lots of babies in town and was on call. Daniel was a physicist who ne...

8 likes 3 comments 3
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From the Depths

Submitted to Contest #255

Annie walked as though fatigue held her hostage. With each step, she sighed at the terrible sounds of despair. Her eyes were half shut, and her body was despondent about the issues surrounding her."Why should I prepare things for others to see as they pass this place?" She said. "It always ends with the same outcome. Doesn't it?"She meandered herself toward what she thought was the river bed.The thought of thrusting her body into the river to allow the raging water to take her away with it crossed her weary mind. She knew if she knew how to ...

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She's A Terrible Gossip: The Column for Everyone's Benefit

How do rumours get started anyway? Is there someone who knows?"I'm willing to bet that someone envious believes they should have had better circumstances in a particular area and is now trying to save face. What do you think, Paulie?""Nah, man. I know who starts rumours. Two-faced, phony, assed motherfuckcers who think they can because they are above detection since they have a squeaky clean operation and that nobody would suspect as being such an asshole until the jig is up, and lo and behold: Chuckie is that asshole. Otherwise, how'd you t...

3 likes 3 comments 3
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A Flash in the Pan

Submitted to Contest #253

 Wade saw the house's roofline and hiked along the forest's edge. It was ten minutes until 12:00 noon when he walked past it initially, but the tall spires and darkened stained glass windows' Gothic look weren't to be ignored. He'd never seen an actual Gothic mansion before—only what he'd seen in movies and knew about from what he read in books. The house piqued his interest, and Wade, without thinking about the possibilities of anything untoward, quickened his pace toward the front door.He stepped onto the porch with a high, double-arc...

10 likes 6 comments 6
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'Til Death Do Us Part?

Submitted to Contest #252

Somehow, I had settled on marrying a narcissist. It didn’t quite resonate with me until I studied at university and read about behaviours in humans. The similarities I noticed between my husband and the sociological outlook of a narcissist fascinated me.  Physically and emotionally, he’s comfortable with me, but he checked out a long time ago. I see, hear, and feel it with everything he does. It’s a level of comfort he’s reached with me. Regardless of the circumstances, I am as dependable as a rock in his life.  He’s got me by the ...

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Wade's Regret

Submitted to Contest #251

Wade spotted the roofline and walked the perimeter of the woods until he found an opening to a well-worn, tiny path. He stepped onto the porch, pondered his next move, and looked around, nervous and alert. He turned to go, but a gust of wind swept him into the house.  The door slammed shut loudly and delivered Wade into the foyer. He heard a woman’s voice and his name. It came from behind him. He turned to see a woman dressed as though she were going to the ball in her long blonde hair, powdered red cheeks, and ruby red lipstick in...

10 likes 7 comments 7
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The Practice

“You mean our son, Jerome, has type 1 diabetes? How can that be? It doesn’t run in any of our families. I demand to know how this happened,” Phil yelled at the endocrinologist and his nursing team. #Tracy stepped into the batter’s box. She was suitable for a base hit anytime, anywhere, under any circumstance. Nobody could get inside her head.  The coaches gave the signs for stealing. Each baserunner got ready. The pitch came fast into the box. Tracy swung with precision and excellent timing, and the ball drifted over the fence, and...

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Miss, miss

"Miss, miss. Remember how you told us to come in today and try to repeat or write down a story that we heard or overheard? Well, I have one. May I?""Brandon, of course. Thank you for volunteering." The space in his front teeth made him look slightly like Opie, but he didn't have red hair. It was more like a dirty blonde."Okay, here goes nothing.""Don't sweat it. We'll be in and out before anyone knows a stone is missing," Jay said."That's the point," Abe said."What? To make them think they're getting robbed." Deaques said."Yeah, and it begin...

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She CudaShudaWoulda

Nelly stood on the bar; the "show me your tits" girl never realized her boyfriend made her flash her tits on command while she danced to whatever music he picked from one of his sleaziest playlists, which was a demeaning and demoralizing thing to do to another human being.She doesn't look like she's ever saggy now since Dr. D got a hold of her," George said.#The courts were beautiful, and the couple took it all in as the concierge took their bags to their room and opened their duty-free Scotch.Immediately, George slipped over to the tennis c...

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I’ll Tell You Something; I’m Never Getting Married

"I can't afford to buy you out. As much as I would like to keep the kid's routine and his friends here in place, his world will already be ripped apart when we sign the papers, and you go your way, and I go mine. But where is he going to go?"Ross lay across the top of the stairs, dressed for school but quiet as a blade of grass."I already spoke to Kay and Ed across the way. They'll keep him as long as you pay his keep. Monthly or weekly. But money or no go. Understand.His stomach wretched with what he was hearing, caused his mind to whirl wi...

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Horseshoes

Horseshoes have many parts. Each part is essential to the whole because there would be no shoe without one of those pieces. Papa told all his kids as they grew old enough to understand the same thing.Mary Ellen thought Papa told Fibs because the family had already functioned without two parts: Mama and Jeffrey. It was like Mama and Jeffrey didn't exist. Mary Ellen rolled her eyes at her papa, "The resident windbag.""Dale, are you there?" Mary Ellen said."Yeah. Why? What's up?""We're heading to the cabin this weekend. Grab some of your friend...

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Hurley's Stars Align

Thoughts of his ninth-grade astrology unit resurfaced as he found himself adrift in the vastness of the sea. It's fascinating how the mind can retrieve or at least convince itself of memories when immersed in overwhelming chaos and stress about what lies ahead.Days passed as Hurley McKinnis clung to his resolve. Uncertain of his fate, whether he would survive or perish. There was no one to ask or lend a helping hand. Ocean water covered his feet, but he stayed at that level and rose no higher. He was aware of his ability to maintain that pos...

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Something Old is New Again and Not Sinking In

"Did I take that? When?" My mother asked me that a lot lately. It made me sad inside, but what else could I do? I had to lie to her and tell her, "No." "Nothing is the same anymore," she said and moaned. Then, I knew she had made more out of it than was worth mentioning. But that wasn't how things began at all. In the beginning, nobody around could hold a candle to my mother. And that was in any category across multiple subject disciplines and physical feats. She was an academic and physical powerhouse whose tiny frame held secrets from many...

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